Land of Light and Shadows

Chapter 63

Chapter 63

All Lyv could hear as soon as the remnants of her magic settled into dust around her was her shallow yet even breathing, her slowing heartbeat.

She took one step forward where Corliss had been, legs shaking, and then collapsed onto her hands and knees.

None of her magic remained, having burned straight through it, and she didn't regret it. One for one moment.

Her fingers dug into the bright green grass beneath her, feeling the earth, feeling the warm breeze that kissed against her skin.

Even as she fell forward, pressing her cheek against the ground.

Every emotion came to the surface at once.

Love.

Utter peace after so long of this world being in the dark.

One deep breath and she knew.

One slight tug on her and Jai's now healed and rebound mating bond and she knew.

He was on the other side, waiting for her to come to him.

I love you, she whispered down it, hoping he would hear at least that before she could tell him herself.

Soon.

As she continued to focus on her breath and her heartbeat, both of which came slower now, someone turned her over. Now, she could see the birds flying and singing overhead against a bright blue sky dotted with puffy white clouds. Exactly how her Escarral was supposed to be.

And then a face appeared. Two faces. Then so many more.

They were screaming for her, crying out as healing magic surged into her from one on her left. She didn't have the heart to tell him, her father, it would do absolutely nothing for her.

But he knew without her having to. His healing magic slowly receded from her as he looked up at another above her and shook his head slowly, defeat and anguish twisting his features, darkening his gaze.

Another appeared above hers, one she loved so much. Somehow, she found the strength to reach up and cradle Gideon's face in her hands, even as his tears fell against her skin.

"Lyv," he begged as his voice cracked with emotion, leaning his forehead against her. "Please, Lyv. Don't...don't do this to me. Don't leave me."

A quiet hum reverberated through her, the only sound she could make until her words somehow found her. "I...I love you," she whispered to him, eyes slowly closing then opening back up to see the grief in his. "All of you. And tell Elys..."

"Please..."

"I'm sorry," she breathed. "I'm sorry I had to break my promise to him."

Gideon was sobbing then, falling forward as he laid his head on her stomach, holding her tight. Lyv's hand rested on his cheek as he reached up to hold it there, kissing her palm.

Thia appeared at his side, wrapping one arm around him while she reached down to touch Lyv's arm. "Thank you. Thank you for coming into my life and saving mine. Thank you for all you've done for me, Lyv. For all of us."

It was her beautiful and completely healed mother she was staring at then, though her face was upside down above hers. Bridget's eyes were shining, though a fierce pride and absolutely love were, too. Hands shaking, she was brushing Lyv's hair back from her face, touching the silver Deverell streak along her temple.

Lyv's breath hitched as she stared at her, panic rising in her throat. "Momma..."

Bridget leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead, continuing to brush her hair, along her cheek, staring at Lyv as if she were trying to remember every feature while she could. "It's all right, sweetheart. Everything will be all right. Just breathe. You'll be all right."

She reached up with her other hand, fingers trembling, and grabbed onto her mother's, holding it against her cheek. Lyv's eyes slide over to her father then, with Emmeric beside him for support, both trying to hold themselves together. They weren't the only ones. Mik, bloody from wounds now healed and covered in ash and dust, was kneeling down with his head in one hand, staring at her. Both Allel and Kalla had tears streaming, right alongside Camilla and Soren and every single guardsman that surrounded them.

And Cleo...gods, the cousin she didn't know she had until a few weeks before, had both hands covering her mouth, holding in a sob as she knelt down beside Bridget, then leaned in to kiss Lyv's cheek. She wasn't just about to lose her cousin but had also lost her mother as well.

Then her sister Ada appeared, pushing through the crowd around them, frantically screaming Lyv's name. She was in her leather and armor, face covered with blood and sweat and dirt, eyes wide in panic before they landed on Lyv. Her scream sounded far in the distance, as she ran forward, and Lyv couldn't even make out the words, the pleads she was saying to her. Gyver was right behind her, then Bridget and Davon.

Lyv wanted to see them, to talk to them and laugh just one more time, but all she could see was that bright blue sky above her...and the shimmering white light that started blurring the edges of her vision.

With her breath growing more and more shallow, heart beating every few seconds with more time passing between each one, Lyv made a small noise, a whimper as she felt herself fading. Yet the further and further she fell into that endless sleep, the closer she knew she'd be in getting to see Jai again.

But her mother was there, right there with her through it all, talking softly to her even though Lyv could only see her lips moving. Everyone was. Holding her and just being with her until she found her way to the surface for a moment so Lyv could hear what she was saying.

"It's all right, Lyv," Bridget told her again, leaning down to brush another kiss against her forehead. "You can go, my sweet girl. We'll see you again someday."

Lyv's hands tightened around both hers and Gideon's as she let out another whimper.

"You saved us. You saved us all and this world around us. We owe it all to you. But right now, you deserve to rest, too. And I know you miss Jai more than anything...so go. Go be with him and Bence and everyone else we've lost. We'll be all right here. This isn't goodbye forever, so breathe."

Breathe.

Lyv's mind was racing even as everything else slowed around her. Flash after flash of and yet she could see it all crystal clear.

Every memory of her childhood in Escarral with her father Bence and her sisters.

The first time she'd met Gideon when she didn't know just how important the male would become to her.

Learning how to use her magic.

Meeting her future family in Dalcaine.

Watching Roshan hatch and grow into her beautiful dragon.

The moment when she realized Bridget and Alberich were her real parents.

Then Elys, the boy she loved so absolutely, the boy she didn't get to say a proper goodbye to.

And Jai. Oh, Jai. Lyv held on tight to their healed and brightly shining bond, feeling him happy and peaceful on the other side, and all she wanted then was to be with him.

So, she began to follow it to wherever he was.

The blue above her slowly edged into white. A glittering white she found herself stepping toward.

Breathe, just as her mother told her.

In and out.

In...